Blake Snell's long stretch of free agency has come to an end.
The National League Cy Young Award winner agreed to a two-year, $62 million contract with the San Francisco Giants on Monday, 10 days before his new team opens its regular season against his former team, the San Diego Padres, a source confirmed. ESPN's Jeff Basson. The deal also includes opting out after the first season.
Snell's deal — similar to that of fellow Scott Boras clients Cody Bellinger and Matt Chapman, who both signed after the start of spring training — gives him a higher average annual value in exchange for a shorter length on his contract, but allows him to repeat. Enter free agency with hopes of enjoying a much stronger market next season.
Snell capped what has been a busy offseason for the Giants, who have made the playoffs just once in the past seven years and are trying to add more star power to a team led by now three-time manager of the year Bob Melvin.
The Giants added a new center fielder and leadoff hitter in Korea's Jung Hoo Lee, who signed a six-year, $113 million contract in December, and a new middle-of-the-order bat in Jorge Soler, who signed a three-year, $42 million deal in February. They also traded for former Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray, who won't return until the second half after recovering from Tommy John surgery, and signed Jordan Hicks, who will become the full-time starter.
But their biggest moves came late, when they landed Chapman on March 1 with a three-year, $54 million deal that included two opt-outs, agreeing to bring in Snell 18 days earlier.
Snell, 31, spent the past three years with the Padres and will now return to a division that received more than $1.2 billion in cash, headlined by the Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow.
Snell threw a four-inning simulated game from his hometown of Seattle on Friday. The Houston Astros, Los Angeles Angels and New York Yankees were among the teams most frequently linked to Snell, but the Giants' short-lived offer ultimately won out.
Snell is one of seven pitchers to win the Cy Young Award in both the American League and National League, going 14-9 with an MLB-best 2.25 ERA for San Diego and winning the trophy in 2023. He received 28 out of 30 first-place votes.
In 2018, Snell received 17 of 30 first-place votes after posting a 1.89 ERA in 31 starts for the Tampa Bay Rays over Justin Verlander.
Snell has long been known for some of the worst stuff of any left-hander in the game, with a wicked fastball-breaking ball combination. When the Rays made him available for trade following the 2020 World Series, San Diego took the opportunity to move four players to lefty. He allowed the fewest hits per nine innings (5.8) of any pitcher eligible for the ERA title last season, surrendering just 115 hits in his 180 innings.
However, some teams were concerned about bidding on him in free agency due to his past command issues and inconsistency. The year after he won his first Cy Young Award, Snell's ERA rose to 4.29. Last season, Snell led the major leagues with 99 runs scored.
Snell's deal with the Giants was first reported by the New York Post.
ESPN's Buster Olney contributed to this report.
